Door latch with key lock



Dec. 24, 1963 J. MOORE 3,1 5, 26

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United States Patent 3,115,026 DQOR LATCH WITH KEY LOCK Francis J. Moore, 4248 Drew Ave. 5., Minneapolis, Minn. Filed May 24,. 1962, Ser. No. 197,333 2 Claims. (Cl. 70135) This invention relates generally to a fulcrumed type door latch with improved locking features. The present invention is designed to provide a simplified and inexpensive yet eflicient and secure door latch adaptable for use with any door that may require a key locking feature.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a durable yet inexpensive fulcrum lever type door latch mechanism wherein guiding means are provided for stabilizing the fulcrumed lever and a key locking feature is provided to prevent movement of the lever when in the latched position.

It is another object to provide a fulcrumed lever type door latch adapted to be quickly and easily mounted on doors of varying thickness without requiring the use of any wood attaching elements such as wood screws or the like and without requiring mortising of the door.

It is another object to provide a latch assembly including a pivotally mounted lever mounted on a door with a latch element thereon adapted to be received in a fixed latch element which can be mounted on either the face of a door frame or on a door stop to securely hold the door in a closed position, and said latch elements being adapted for use with either right or left swinging doors.

It is another object to provide a fixed latch element mounted on the door frame or door stop to securely hold the door in a closed position and provide independent and separate locking devices for the inside and outside of the door, the inside locking device being built into the fixed latch element that will affect the security that is desirous in a locked door.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention will more fully appear from the following description made in connection with the accompanying drawing, wherein like reference characters refer to the same or similar parts throughout the views,- and in which:

FIG. 1 is an elevational view of my new door latch mechanism as viewed from the outside or key side;

FIG. 2 is an elevational View of my new door latch mechanism and a fixed latch element as viewed from the inside;

FIG. 3 is a horizontal sectional View taken substantially along the line 33 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a vertical section taken substantially along the line 44 of FIG. 1 and showing the latch mechanism in latched position and the inside locking device in locked position;

FIG. 5 is a vertical section taken substantially along the line 4-4 of FIG. 1 and showing the latch mechanism in open position and the locking device in unlocked position;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary horizontal sectional view taken substantially along the line 66 of FIG. 4;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary vertical sectional View taken substantially along the line 7-7 of FIG. 4 showing the locking element in open position by full lines and in locked position by dotted lines, and showing the relief opening in outline by dotted lines; and

FIG. 8 is a side elevational view showing an alternative form of a fixed latch element mounted adjacent the door stop.

A conventional door and frame assembly is illustrated in the accompanying drawing. This includes the door 1%, frame 11 and stop 12, as best shown in FIG. 3.

A door mounted latch unit includes a bifurcated fulcrum mounting member 13 having a suitable fulcrum 3,115,026 Patented Dec. 24, 1963 vertical spaced relation on both sides of said fulcrum mounting member 13. These protuberances 16 are of substantial length and have internal screw threads. The flange 15 further has a relief opening 17 in vertically spaced relation to said opening 18.

The mounting member 13 extends inwardly from the flange 15 and in the form shown is bifurcated in shape. A fulcrum lever 19 is mounted between such stabilizing mounting member 13 and is pivotally connected to such member 13 as by the pivot pin 14.

The exterior end of the fulcrum lever 19 has a lock housing 20 in which a key locking device 21 is arranged. An exterior operating handle 22 is fixed to said exterior end of the lever. Said locking device has a key operating mechanism of a conventional type known as a cylinder lock, and no further description thereof is believed necessary. Said locking device 21 is in such vertical spaced relation to the fulcrum mounting element 13 as to allow the locking element 23 on the inner end of such device to register with the relief opening 17 in flange 15 when the lock is in the unlocked position (see FIG. 5), but is in interference with the outer face of the flange adjacent said relief opening when the lock is in the locked position (see FIG. 4). Said locking element 23 has a general shape as shown in FIGS. 4, 5 and 6 to permit ease of ingress into the relief opening 17 so as to insure ease of operability of said locking element 23 into either locked or unlocked position.

The flange 15 further has outwardly extending framing ridge 24 surrounding an outer portion of such fulcrum lever 19 which serves to prevent tampering with the locking element 23.

An inner latch element 25 is removably mounted in fixed relation to the inner end of such fulcrum lever 19 as by the bracket 26 which is removably secured to the lever 19 by the handle 27 whichis threadably attached thereto and extends through an aperture in the lever and aligned openings in the bracket 26, such openings being elongated in a horizontal direction to allow adjustment in said direction, as best shown in FIG. 3. The inner end of the bracket is rounded off to permit elevation of the inner end of the fulcrum lever 19.

An inner flange plate 28 is tightly clamped against the inner surface of the door 10 as by the screws 29 passing through a second pair of inwardly extending tapered anchoring protuberances 30 in vertical spaced relationship to the lever 19 so as to allow such screws to be received in the internally threaded passages of the respectively aligned inwardly extending tapered protuberances 16 from flange 15. The threaded passages and protuberances 16 and 3t) and screws 29 are of sufiicient length to permit a relatively great variance in the thickness of the door 10 on which the latch is mounted. The inner flange 28 further has a vertical slot 31 in such vertical spaced relation to such protuberances 30 and of such width and vertical height as to permit the fulcrum lever 19 to pass therethrough with no hindrance to the vertical pivotal motion of said lever 19.

A fixed latch assembly has a mounting plate 32 which is securely mounted to the inner face of the door frame 11 as by the screws 33. A pair of fixed latch elements 34a and 3412 are attached to the plate 32 and a pair of angularly sided camming surfaces 340 and 34d are provided which are designed to guide the movable latch element 25 into one of the two recesses 35a and 35b respectively provided immediately inwardly of latch elements 34a and 34b. The weight of the handle 27 com- 3 bined with the weight of the lever 19, the latch 25 and bracket 26 disposed inwardly of the pivot 14, all serve in the arrangement illustrated to urge the latch downwardly into the recess 35a.

A keeper or positive inner lock element 36 such as the bifurcated slide of the shape shown in FIG. 2 is slidably retained in guides 37 to maintain such lock element 36 in adjacent relation to an inner flange 32:: provided on said mounting plate 32. Said keeper or positive inner lock element 36 normally permits ingress of the movable latch element 25 into the recess 35a but serving to positively retain, in the arrangement illustrated, said movable latch element 25 within said recess 35a when shifted into locking position to overlie the latch element 25.

An alternative form of fixed latch assembly is illustrated in FIG. 8 wherein a mounting plate 41 is securely mounted to a door stop 40 as by the screws 42. A pair of fixed latch element 43a and 43b attached to the plate and a pair of angularly sided camming surfaces 43c and 43d are designed to guide the movable latch element 25 into one of two recesses 44a and 44b respectively provided inwardly of latch elements 43a and 43b. Said latch elements 43a and 43b, camming surfaces 43c and 43d and recesses 44a and 44b lie in an adjacent parallel plane to said mounting plate 41 and are attached to said mounting plate 41. A movable latch element 25 is of such proportion as to allow operation with such alternative fixed latch assembly. Said door stop mounted fixed latch assembly operates in substantially the same manner as the previously described door frame mounted fixed latch assembly.

It will be apparent that the latch element 43a and 43b and the associated elements 43c, 43d, 44a and 4412 have been provided to permit the assembly to be inserted for use on either a right or left swinging door.

It will be seen that I have provided a relatively simple yet eflicient and secure door latch mechanism.

It will, of course, be understood that various changes may be made in the form, details, proportion and arrangement of the parts without departing from the scope of my invention, which generally stated consists of the matter set forth in the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. A fulcrum type door latch mechanism comprising a bifurcated mounting and stabilizing member, an elongated lever interposed between the bifurcated portions of said member, fulcrum means supported by said member and disposed to fulcrum an intermediate portion of said lever to permit up and down oscillation thereof, a mounting plate fixed to said member with means for positively attaching said plate to one side of a door, said plate having an opening therein through which said lever extends, a handle member mounted on the portion of said lever extending through said opening and having a vertically offset lock mounting portion, a stop element mounted for shifting movement in said offset portion and projecting toward said plate to abut the same when in a first position and said lever is in latching position to prevent oscillation of said lever into unlatched position, key-operated means for shifting said stop element into a second position, said plate having a relief opening therein to receive said stop element when in said second position, and handle means provided on the other end of said lever.

2. A fulcrum type door latch mechanism comprising a bifurcated mounting and stabilizing member, an elongated lever interposed between the bifurcated portions of said member, fulcrum means supported by said member and disposed to fulcrum an intermediate portion of said lever to permit up and down oscillation thereof, a mounting plate fixed to said member with means for positively attaching said plate to one side of a door, said plate having an opening therein through which said lever extends, a handle member mounted on the portion of said lever extending through said opening and having a vertically offset lock mounting portion, key-operated means mounted in said offset portion for rotation on an axis disposed generally normal to said plate, a stop element mounted on said means eccentrically of said axis and projecting toward said plate to abut the face thereof when in a first position and said lever is in latching position to prevent oscillation of said lever into unlatched position, said key-operated means rotating said stopping element to a second position, said plate having a relief opening therein positioned to receive said stop element when in said second position to allow oscillation of the lever into unlatched position, and handle means provided on the other end of said lever.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 32,990 Ellis Aug. 1861 275,287 Taylor Apr. 3, 1883 316,265 Helton Apr. 21, 1885 729,603 Keverline June 2, 1903 1,014,290 Frantz Jan. 9, 1912 1,071,190 Torian Aug. 26, 1913 2,352,465 Anderson et al June 27, 1944 2,487,428 Earnest Nov. 8, 1949 2,794,663 Grodt et al June 4, 1957 

1. A FULCRUM TYPE DOOR LATCH MECHANISM COMPRISING A BIFURCATED MOUNTING AND STABILIZING MEMBER, AN ELONGATED LEVER INTERPOSED BETWEEN THE BIFURCATED PORTIONS OF SAID MEMBER, FULCRUM MEANS SUPPORTED BY SAID MEMBER AND DISPOSED TO FULCRUM AN INTERMEDIATE PORTION OF SAID LEVER TO PERMIT UP AND DOWN OSCILLATION THEREOF, A MOUNTING PLATE FIXED TO SAID MEMBER WITH MEANS FOR POSITIVELY ATTACHING SAID PLATE TO ONE SIDE OF A DOOR, SAID PLATE HAVING AN OPENING THEREIN THROUGH WHICH SAID LEVER EXTENDS, A HANDLE MEMBER MOUNTED ON THE PORTION OF SAID LEVER EXTENDING THROUGH SAID OPENING AND HAVING A VERTICALLY OFFSET LOCK MOUNTING PORTION, A STOP ELEMENT MOUNTED FOR SHIFTING MOVEMENT IN SAID OFFSET PORTION AND PROJECTING 